Preserving the taste of Summer
Late summer signals the beginning of what I call ‘preserving the taste of summer’ time. Tomato ripening is hastened by the unrelenting heat of August. Whether your garden produces enough plum/’roma’ tomatoes to jar or you purchase them at a local market in 25 or 50 pound crates, canning is worth the effort.
At my house, we make it a family endeavor – it has to be since this is a LOT of work. The bulk of which is spent preparing the tomatoes; some for sauce and others will be jarred whole. Preparation is key and this is what I’ve honed as my system.
All large, deep stockpots come out of the cupboards andthey are filled with hot water (it takes tooo long to wait for this amount of cold water to boil). When the water boils drop as many tomatoes into the pot as will cover the surface.
Peel and Sort
Next, fill the sink, or a large basin, with cold water. This will be for when the tomatoes have split their skins in the boiling water. The smallest indication of a split is fine, the cold water will do the rest of the work loosening the skin. A wire ‘spider’ comes in very handy for this process, lifting the slit tomatoes out of the pots and drop them into the cold water.
As soon as the tomatoes are cool enough to handle, slide the skins off and place the tomatoes in a large bowl but do not discard the skins! Put them in another bowl as this will be the base for the sauce and liquid needed for jarring. During the peeling, I sort which tomatoes are best quality for jarring whole. All others go into the sauce bowl.
Tomatoes into sauce
Now for the ‘preserving the taste of summer assembly line’- plan on using as many large bowls as you have. One for the peeled tomatoes, another for the skins and a shallow bowl to sit under the press to receive the lovely red sauce.
This is the two-person part of the process (it can be done alone but this will leave you exhausted and very grouchy after about 3 hours, and there is still long way to go!) one person feeds the tomatoes into the press and the other turns the crank-handle while keeping an eye on the bowl receiving the sauce. You will need to empty this bowl into a large pot often.
Passing skins through the press
Once we have finished the tomatoes, it’s on to the pile of tomato skins. We pass the skins through the press at least twice. Yes, at least twice. (My husband would prefer to do this even a third time but I have to set some boundaries for the sake of sanity). If you don’t utilize the skins, you will be losing a lot of sauce.
When the pot is about halfway full, set it over medium to high heat and allow it to simmer. The key is to decrease the water content of the tomatoes. The pay-off will be worth it, stick with it!
Since tomatoes are an acidic vegetable, we can use the water bath method of processing the jars. This brings us to the next preserving summer phase: preparing the water bath for the jars. I use a huge aluminum pot just for this purpose; it can hold at least 15 quart jars. A propane tank attached to an elevated outdoor burner is the only way to efficiently process this many jars.
Jar Preparation
If you don’t have outdoor space, you can process your jars on the stove in a deep stock pot that will accomodate the jars. The jars must be covered by a minimum of 1″ of water to safely process the contents. After you have washed and sterilized the jars and lids, you are ready to fill. Use a canning funnel as it makes the task much neater and easier.
Before filling, I add a few fresh basil leaves to the jars for extra flavor. I put in as many tomatoes as I can fit; shaking the jars gently helps adjust the the contents as you fill them. I fill to the shoulder of the jars and then add the reserved sauce/liquid to within 1/2″ of the top of the jar. This is called headspace and it is necessary to allow movement of the contents while they are processing.
Filling the jars
I fill all my jars and then go back to each one with a small spatula to release the air bubbles. This is very important as it affects the preservation and space inside the jar. Next, using a clean cloth or paper towel dipped in a bit of boiling water, go around each jar, carefully cleaning the top of each rim. If you don’t clean well, the lids will not have complete contact with the jars and you risk a seal failure.
By now, the canner water should be at a full boil. Place a lid on each jar followed by the band. Hand tighten only. The bands are only needed to hold the lid in place during the canning process; once the jar is sealed, you’ll remove the bands.
Processing in the Water Bath
You will need a jar lifter to put the filled jars into the water and take them out. These are available online here and also here.
After all the jars are in the pot/canner, the water must come back to a full, rolling boil. This is when time count begins. For quart jars, I process them 60 minutes. During this time I prepare the table with cutting boards covered with folded towels.
Jar Sealing and Storage
After processing, use the jar lifter to remove each jar from the canner/pot. Be sure to keep the jars level as you transport them to the table. Do not press on the lids or test them in any way. The process of hermetic sealing develops as the jars cool. Within 45 minutes to an hour, you should begin to hear a high pitch ‘ping’ from each jar. That is the sweet sound of preserving the taste of summer.
All jars should be sealed after 24 hours. This is evident by a depression in the top of the lid. Now if you press on the lid it should not bounce back. If this happens, you will hear a ‘pop’ and it indicates a failed seal. Place the jar in the refrigerator and use within 3 days.
Remove the bands and wash the entire jar in hot, soapy water to remove any residue from the canner. I date each lid and then put away the jars.
After all of this work, you should have many jars of fresh, whole tomatoes and sauce. For those winter nights when you come home from work tired but want home-cooked food, open a jar and make a quick, homemade pasta sauce. Enjoy your bounty from preserving the taste of summer.
